Abstract

Introduction: Recent experimental studies have revealed that increased ghrelin levels protect against depressive symptoms of chronic
stress in rats. Moreover it was shown that neuropeptide Y (NPY) has an anxiolytic-like effect mediated through both Y1 and Y5 receptors.
On the other hand, peptide YY inhibits, while ghrelin stimulates, the release of NPY.
The aim of this study was to assess the association between plasma concentrations of ghrelin and PYY and the level of depression in obese
women.
Material and methods: In forty-five obese women (55 ± 7 years old) without concomitant diseases, body composition was estimated by
bioimpedance method, in addition to anthropometric measurements. Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) was used for the evaluation of
depression levels. Plasma concentrations of ghrelin and PYY were measured in collected blood samples.
Results: 23 (55.1%) women had severe (22.0 ± 5.2 pts) and 10 (22.2%) had mild (12.1 ± 1.9 pts) levels of depression. Obese women with
concomitant depression were of similar age and had comparable body mass, BMI, and body composition as those without depression. In
addition, there were no differences in plasma ghrelin and PYY levels between the study subgroups. No correlation between BDI and
plasma concentrations of ghrelin or PYY was found.
Conclusions: Depression in obese women does not seem to be related to the plasma levels of ghrelin and PYY.
(Pol J Endocrinol 2010; 61 (2): 174-177)

Abstract

Introduction: Recent experimental studies have revealed that increased ghrelin levels protect against depressive symptoms of chronic
stress in rats. Moreover it was shown that neuropeptide Y (NPY) has an anxiolytic-like effect mediated through both Y1 and Y5 receptors.
On the other hand, peptide YY inhibits, while ghrelin stimulates, the release of NPY.
The aim of this study was to assess the association between plasma concentrations of ghrelin and PYY and the level of depression in obese
women.
Material and methods: In forty-five obese women (55 ± 7 years old) without concomitant diseases, body composition was estimated by
bioimpedance method, in addition to anthropometric measurements. Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) was used for the evaluation of
depression levels. Plasma concentrations of ghrelin and PYY were measured in collected blood samples.
Results: 23 (55.1%) women had severe (22.0 ± 5.2 pts) and 10 (22.2%) had mild (12.1 ± 1.9 pts) levels of depression. Obese women with
concomitant depression were of similar age and had comparable body mass, BMI, and body composition as those without depression. In
addition, there were no differences in plasma ghrelin and PYY levels between the study subgroups. No correlation between BDI and
plasma concentrations of ghrelin or PYY was found.
Conclusions: Depression in obese women does not seem to be related to the plasma levels of ghrelin and PYY.
(Pol J Endocrinol 2010; 61 (2): 174-177)

Authors

The cookies allow us to identify your computer and find out details about your last visit. They remembering whether you've visited the site before, so that you remain logged in - or to help us work out how many new website visitors we get each month. Most internet browsers accept cookies automatically, but you can change the settings of your browser to erase cookies or prevent automatic acceptance if you prefer.